September « 2009 « Drug Abuse Rehab Solution Blog

September 23, 2009

Mackenzie Phillips Gets Clean Through Narconon Program

Filed under: Riverbend — Tags: Mackenzie Phillips, Narconon Louisiana — admin @ 4:12 pm

Hollywood actress is finally able to overcome life-long addiction.

At a very young age Mackenzie Phillips was introduced to the world of drug addiction. “I kind of grew up on television. I was what they call a child star,” says Mackenzie. “I also grew up in a family that used and abused drugs. My dad was a rock star in the 60′s. Drugs were the norm in my family.”

Despite the fact that Mackenzie watched as the people close to her struggle with addiction, it did not deter her from using drugs.

Instead Mackenzie’s drug use increased, and as a result continually crept into her professional life. She was unable to maintain her lifestyle, and was asked to leave “One Day At a Time.” She continued to use drugs, and went in and out of rehabs, until one day Mackenzie finally found a solution to her problem – the Narconon drug and alcohol rehabilitation program.

“I came to Narconon Louisiana addicted to heroin and cocaine, having just been bailed out on felony drug possession charges” says Mackenzie. “I felt like my life was over. I’d had 10 years clean time in the past, but I felt defeated by my relapse.”

Once Mackenzie arrived at Narconon Louisiana she was given the opportunity to break free from her past. “At Narconon Louisiana I was welcomed into a family of amazing people who truly cared about me. I was given the opportunity to repair past difficulties, under the caring and watchful eye of the staff. The program has given me the freedom to move forward into my future, a future I did not think I had” explains Phillips.

The way the Narconon program achieved this is by handling both the physical and mental aspects of addiction through a sauna detoxification program, which eliminates residues that are left in the body by drugs thereby reducing physical drug cravings. The second half of the Narconon Program is a series of life skills courses, which restore an individual back to a productive, ethical, contributing member of society while raising the abilities of the individual.

Created in 2006, Narconon Louisiana has helped hundreds of people achieve a life of sobriety and continually maintains over a 75% success rate of permanent recovery from addiction.

Today Mackenzie has proudly achieved sobriety through the Narconon Louisiana program. “This is the beginning of my life. I’ve learned who I am and what I am and I like what I’ve found out about myself. I can now move forward with my life, letting the past remain behind me and that means that life is new and I am new. I’ll never forget my time [at Narconon].”

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September 15, 2009

Narconon Louisiana: The Solution To The Drug Addiction Epidemic

Filed under: Riverbend — Tags: alcohol rehabilitation, drug abuse, drug addiction, drug treatment — admin @ 1:37 pm

Narconon Louisiana, a non-profit drug and alcohol rehabilitation facility, opened its doors in 2006 as a resource for locals struggling with addiction. In an area that had seen some of the worst devastation in years after Hurricane Katrina, there was no real solution in place for the rampant drug use. Today, after three years in operation, and 150 graduates Narconon Louisiana has maintained that the people of the state do not have to suffer from addiction; that there is a way out.

One reason why Narconon Louisiana is so successful is because the program does not subscribe to the idea that addiction is a disease, instead, they work on handling the underlying problems and reasons why a person uses drugs in the first place. Once these issues are isolated and handled and the individual can see that they are in control of their life they no longer feel the need to use drugs as a solution to a problem.

Jeff Lukas, Executive Director of Narconon Louisiana explains that these problems can differ depending on the individual. “Some people don’t feel comfortable in life, or handling a physical pain while others are suffering with an upset or a loss in life,” he says. “Everyone has a different reason for choosing drugs but the one thing that they all share in common is that they started using drugs because they saw them as a solution to this problem.”

Another unique portion of the Narconon program is a module called the New Life Detoxification Program. This is the part of the Narconon drug treatment that handles the physical aspect of addiction, where clients are able to rid their bodies of the harmful drug residues that are left in the body by drugs. It has been found that, left unhandled; these residues can stay in the body years after consumption of all drugs, and can inducing cravings – a primary reason for relapse.

Using this successful model of treatment, Narconon Louisiana achieves a success rate of 76% for permanent sobriety from addiction.

Drug abuse currently affects 22 million people in the United States. But it does not have to go unhandled. If you or anyone you know is in need of help please contact Narconon Louisiana at 866-422-4650.

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September 11, 2009

Prescription Drug Rehab

Filed under: Riverbend — Tags: drug rehab program, prescription drug abuse — admin @ 9:11 am

With the recent Pfizer lawsuits, it’s no wonder why prescription medications are the second most abused drugs in the country.

What would you think if your doctor had just gotten back from a vacation in the tropics? What would you think when he told you that he spent his days golfing, getting massages, and lounging by the pool? A little jealous – maybe. Thinking you may have gotten in the wrong profession – maybe. Now what would you think if you found out that his tropical vacation was funded by the very makers of the drug your doctor was currently writing you a prescription for?

Most people never second guess their doctors. Often times a personal bond is formed; after all this is the person that helps you, makes you better when you are ill, and counsels you when you have questions. But by pharmaceutical companies and their representatives, the person you view as a savior is also viewed as a target.

This week Pfizer, one of the biggest pharmaceutical companies in America was found guilty of lavishing doctors with expensive gifts, fancy vacations, and expensive dinners, in an attempt to persuade them to prescribe new medications distributed by the company. Bextra, a medication approved by the FDA to treat arthritis as well as menstrual pain in very limited doses, was being marketed by Pfizer in much larger doses that far exceeded what the FDA had originally approved. In addition to marketing the medication improperly, it was also indicated that Pfizer was paying kickbacks to doctors, in an effort to increase prescriptions of the medication.

In a time where prescription drug abuse is becoming more popular than heroin and cocaine Pfizer is proving to be the biggest drug pusher of them all.

Prescription drug abuse is categorized as being mentally and physically addicted to prescription medications. Some examples of the most commonly abused prescription drugs include Xanax, Vicodan, OxyContin, and Bextra. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse an estimated 48 million people (ages 12 and older) have used prescription drugs for nonmedical reasons in their lifetimes. This represents approximately 20 percent of the U.S. population.

And because of the recent increase in accessibility because of the marketing and promotion of these drugs by pharmaceutical companies more and more people will continue to become addicted. In fact, the focus on prescription drug abuse has become so heavy that abusers of prescription medication are seeking out rehabilitation facilities.
Once such rehabilitation facility is Narconon Louisiana. Narconon Louisiana is a non-profit drug and alcohol rehabilitation program, located just outside of Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Since opening its doors three years ago they have maintained an unheard of 76% success rate for permanent sobriety. A number that far exceeds the industry norm.

The Narconon Louisiana program attacks prescription drug abuse with a concept that is gaining more and more popularity; addiction is not a disease. Instead, Narconon Louisiana isolates and handles the underlying problems that caused the individual to use drugs in the first place. The drug rehab program also focuses on the physical aspect of addiction by using a sauna detoxification program to rid their body of the harmful toxins left behind by drugs. Unhandled, these harmful toxins can dislodge in the bloodstream and cause physical drug cravings, so often the downfall of sobriety. Narconon Louisiana is also a drug-free program and does not utilize replacement drugs and other narcotics to get a person to stop using.

Prescription drug abuse does not have to go unhandled. If you or anyone you know is in need of help please call contact Narconon Louisiana today at 866-422-4650.

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September 6, 2009

Celebrity Drug Addiction Takes Its Toll

Filed under: Riverbend — Tags: celebrity rehab, drug abuse, drug addiction, drug rehab — admin @ 12:21 pm

A look back on some of our most beloved icons and their struggle with addiction.

With the world on its knees in response to Michael Jackson’s death; only to hear news soon after about the death of DJ Adam Goldstein, it is clearer than ever that celebrity treatment options that get results need to be more available to those struggling with addiction.

We live in a society that idolizes movie stars, musicians and performers but cannot tolerate the use of drugs amongst these people that set the pace, in fashions and often times behavior of entire generations. Drug abuse has got to stop. We don’t tolerate it in our schools, or in our homes, and shouldn’t in the media. But the only way to handle this is through celebrity drug rehab.

Throughout the generations there have been many lost stars. John Belushi, Jimmi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Marilyn Monroe, and Kurt Cobain are only a few of the tragedies brought on by drug abuse.

John Belushi, who we loved on Saturday Night Live, and who we still talk about in Animal House died alone in a hotel room at the hands of another addict. Jimmi Hendrix, whose music is still cherished, choked on his own vomit after ingesting too much alcohol and too many barbiturates. Janis Joplin with a voice that can send shivers up one’s spine relapsed, and overdosed on heroin. Marilyn Monroe, one of the most iconic women of our nation died depressed and alone from barbiturates. And Kurt Cobain, whose star was just rising and someone that was loved by millions shot himself after injecting too much heroin. These stories of death plague the phenomenal lives that we all loved.

As a nation we have gotten smarter. Drug rehabs are in almost every major city in every state. We have drug education months, DARE programs, parents are learning how to talk to their kids about drugs, but we’re still missing one vital piece, a piece that makes all the other actions necessary and works against them: the people that our children look up to, who they want to be when they grow up, and who are plastered all over their bedroom wall are getting high. This is the problem, that celebrities should be clean and bright and standing for life-affirming principles rather than death. Addiction can be handled. There are celebrity drug rehab centers that are effective.

One such rehabilitation facility is the Riverbend Retreat Drug Abuse Rehab Center. Narconon Louisiana, located just outside of Baton Rouge, is a long-term inpatient facility that focuses on handling the problem that drugs were a solution to. Students achieve both a mental and physical rehabilitation with Narconon’s unique approach to handling the body and the mind.

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